Nigeria’s Federal Government has denied reports that it facilitated the release of the country’s Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, from detention in the UK.
Last week, Obi was detained at Heathrow Airport in London due to a case of mistaken identity while on a trip to celebrate Easter in the UK.
The former governor of Anambra state was later released, but rumors had circulated that the Federal Government intervened to secure his release.
Adamu Garba, a former presidential aspirant of the All Progressives Congress, (APC), shared a photoshopped image showing the executive chairman of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), Abike Dabiri-Erewa, alongside Peter Obi and a UK law enforcement officer.
Adamu claimed that the APC-led government through Abike Dabiri facilitated the release of Peter Obi from detention.
Bashir Ahmad, an aide of President Muhammadu Buhari, also implied that the Federal Government intervened to secure Obi’s release.
However, the spokesperson and head of the Media, Public Relations, and Protocol Unit of NiDCOM, Abdur-Rahman Balogun, has denied these claims.
Balogun described the viral photo as a media stunt and said that Dabiri-Erewa was not in the UK and not in a position to secure the release of any Nigerian suspected to be under UK interrogation.
Balogun stated, “Our attention has been called to the above social media stunt, which has gone viral. Aunty Abike Dabiri-Erewa is NOT in the UK and NOT in a position to secure the release of any Nigerian suspected to be under UK interrogation. So, members of the public should disregard the information in its entirety.”
Article updated 2 months ago. Content is written and modified by multiple authors.
